Beloved British Snacks

When native Brits leave home to go to Canada or Australia there are certain brands of foods that they miss.  That is possibly why there are so many places online to order classic British treats.

One of these treats is “Discos.”  Discos are a type of potato chip (called crisps in London) that are very greasy and soaked in salt and vinegar.   They go bad quickly so they are best bought when you are actually staying in London.  Online stores do not tend to stock great quantities of them.

Also very popular is a British biscuit made from layered shortbread and raspberry jam known as Jammy Dogers. They have been produced in Britain by the Burton’s Biscuit company for over fifty years. It is by far the most popular sweet biscuit brand in the United Kingdom that is bought by over thirty percent of people who live there.  The biscuits also come in many less popular flavors including Jam n’ Custard and Lively Lemon.

Unmistakably British is the caramel flavored chocolate bar manufactured by Nestle known as the Caramac bar. The bar is pale yellow and made of sweetened condensed milk, butter, artificial flavorings and a lot of sugar.  The Mackintosh company that also manufactures special Caramac Easter eggs makes this.  This is one of those candy treasures that is disappearing over time. The candy used to be available in Canada for twenty years and then was withdrawn from export.

Another beloved British snack is the Curly Wurly.  Created in 1970 this chocolate treat, made by Cadbury, loks like two flat intersecting strings and is made of caramel strips coated in chocolate. There have been versions of this chocolate bar that have been made with as many as 24 intersecting caramel strings.

Strawberry bon bons are a classic British candy that many people miss when they leave the U.K. These are powder pink strawberry flavored balls with a loamy chewy inside.  The surface is dusted with sugar and the center of the candy is very dense. It is made mainly of sugar, dextrose and hydrogenated vegetable oil.

Another very classic and sought after British candy is the Rhubarb and Custards. This is a favorite dessert in England’s cafes but it is also a tiny egg shaped soft candy. The bottom side is rhubarb and the top side is cream and they are usually coated with a very light layer of sugar. This rhubarb and cream candy is so popular in Britain that organic versions are sold.